WI-W vs AUS-W: Australia outclass West Indies to register unassailable lead

Australia have registered an unassailable 2-0 lead in the ongoing three-match T20I series against West Indies with a 17-run win in the second match at the Arnos Vale Ground in St Vincent Kingstown on Sunday.

Skipper Sophie Molineux was lucky with the coin flip for the second time in a row and elected to bat first for the second consecutive time. The visitors were quick to get off the blocks as Georgia Voll launched an onslaught from the get-go.

Voll departed after scoring 39 off 23 balls on the last ball of the sixth over, holing out to mid-on while trying to launch Karishma Ramharack down the ground. Mooney perished shortly after labouring her way to 17 off 20 balls.

Phoebe Litchfield (35 off 29) and Ellyse Perry (42 off 28) added 58 runs for the third wicket and kept the Windies bowlers at bay till the 15th over. Australia posted 164 for the loss of five wickets. Ramharack, Afy Fletcher, Deandra Dottin, Jahzara Claxton, and skipper Hayley Matthews bagged a wicket apiece.

In reply, the hosts lost their hard-hitting opener Qiana Joseph in the fourth over and were behind the eight ball with 13/1 after 3.3 overs. A 77-run partnership between Matthews (56 off 41) and Stafanie Taylor (22 off 27) kept them interested, but they left too much for the others in the end.

Dottin (39* off 28) remained unbeaten at a strike rate of 139.28, but it could only reduce the margin of defeat in the end as the hosts managed 147 for the loss of four wickets in 20 overs. Alana King was the star of the show for the tourists as she returned 2/25 and was adjudged the Player of the Match.

Top run-scorer of the match

Top wicket-taker of the match

Player of the Match

Alana King

Alana King showcased her worth yet again as she dismissed both Matthews and Taylor in quick succession to shatter West Indies' hopes of scaling the target down. She deliberately kept mid-off up for Matthews and invited her to clear it. The Windies skipper took the bait and holed out. She ensnared Taylor into going downtown and got her stumped to finish with figures of 2/25.

Turning Point

Perry's 28-ball 42 was a massive moment in the game as it propelled Australia towards 164. She struck six fours in her innings and paced it at a strike rate of 150, which put the Windies under heaps of pressure. Additionally, King's dismissal of Matthews and Taylor within a span of 16 balls killed Windies' chase.

Winning Team Captain, Sophie Molineux (AUS-W)

"It was hard-fought, the Windies came really hard which we always knew they would do. Plenty of positives. She [Voll] is awesome and really sets the tone for us...we keep backing her to play her game. It's great to see Kingy out here, she's bowled some really hard overs, too, the game was in the balance and we threw the ball to her and she did the job. Thought Georgia Wareham played her role as well. It's been a really good team effort."

Losing Team Captain, Hayley Matthews (WI-W)

"Happy I was able to hit them a bit better towards the end. Probably a bit disappointed with the start I had but glad I was able to stick in. In our bowling innings they got away to a big start and the way we were able to pull them back showed a lot of courage. To get close is an improvement from where we've been...have to put together a full game together now."